King Crimson's 1969 "In the Court of the Crimson King" stands for everything familiar about prog rock—the fantastical lyrics, the eerie ghost-choir Mellotron atmospherics, a brooding atmosphere of Heavy Tunes for Bookish People. But when guitarist Robert Fripp re-formed the band in 1981, after a long personal quest for spiritual and artistic renewal, the sounds that came out were from another universe, a tightly-woven, world-music-and-found-audio informed sound that was...danceable?  Can we even call records like "Discipline" and "Three of a Perfect Pair" prog rock?  Charlie, Henry and Bill talk about the unpredictable road that led to these surprising, thrilling records, the new King Crimson documentary, and why Robert Fripp's NYC album "Exposure" is the secret art-rock gem we want to make one of your new favorites. 3/06/23: UPDATED WITH SOUND CLIPS!

Discussed in this episode

King Crimson's "Discipline" full album on YouTube

King Crimson's "Beat" full album on YouTube

King Crimson's "Three Of A Perfect Pair" full album on YouTube

Robert Fripp's "Exposure" full album on YouTube

The League Of Gentleman's "Dislocated" Live Video 1980 on YouTube

King Crimson's "Elephant Talk" Live Video on Fridays 1981 on YouTube